Researchers at CBU Receive National Funding Awards

Research at Cape Breton University (CBU) continues to gain recognition by national funding bodies, as Dr. Peter MacIntyre and Dr. Princely Ifinedo both receive grants from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) of Canada.

Dr. MacIntyre, a professor of psychology, has been awarded an Insight Grant in the amount of $163,555, over five years, for his research titled A Dynamic Approach to Second Language Communication. Dr. Ifinedo, an associate professor of MIS/management science, was awarded $27,011, over one year, through an Insight Development Grant for his work titled Understanding End-user Counterproductive Security Behaviour in the Workplace: Insights from Relevant Social and Organization Psychology Frameworks.

Dr. Macintyre’s research focuses on the emotional reactions, along with the changes in identity, attitudes and motivation that culminate in a willingness to communicate in a second language. Trying to speak a second language fuses learning and communicating together. It involves a complex series of processes that generate ideas, form sentences, arouse emotions, and evaluate how well the interaction is going, all at the same time.

The second language communication research is being conducted with collaborators Dr. Richard Clément from University of Ottawa and Dr. Tammy Gregersen from the University of Northern Iowa. “The funding means that we can make much more progress in developing methods to study second language learning and communication. We expect that the new findings we generate will be published in books and articles used by teachers and researchers worldwide. It also means that student researchers at CBU will gain experience with innovative methods and develop research skills that they can use in future education or employment opportunities,” says Dr. MacIntyre. “The grant will help to further CBU’s reputation as a research centre for understanding language and communication.”

The research on end-user counterproductive security behaviour examines everyday actions such as responding to spam, using weak passwords, visiting illicit websites at work, not logging out of secured systems after use, and allowing one’s kids to play with work laptop, among others. Building on past literature in this area and by adopting social and organizational psychology frameworks, Dr. Ifinedo’s research seeks to deepen understanding of critical factors that could help to curb end-user counterproductive security behaviour in the workplace.

“This grant means that my research efforts continue to be recognized by peers nationally. The recognition extends to my school and the entire university given the competitive nature of the award,” says Dr. Ifinedo.

The awards were announced today in London, Ontario by The Honourable Greg Rickford, Minister of State (Science and Technology).

“The awards announced today speak to the importance of research underway at CBU and the quality of faculty we have educating our students. Cape Breton University continues to be competitive on the national and international research stages, as proven by the diverse range of awards given to our researchers annually,” says Dr. Dale Keefe, Dean of Research and Graduate Studies, CBU.